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The Water-rat is an attractive native rodent that was once recorded from many localities around the harbour and along the Parramatta River. Water-rats are large rodents that are superbly adapted to aquatic life. They have webbed feet, sleek dense fur, small ears and strong whiskers that enable them to detect invertebrates such as mussels and crabs, even in the murkiest of waters.
Specimens of Water-rats in the Museum's collections date back to 1879 when they were apparently common in places such as Hunters Hill, Point Piper, Elizabeth Bay, the Botanic Gardens and further up the Parramatta River near Gladesville. Water-rats appear to have disappeared from many parts of the harbour but can still sometimes be seen around the foreshores of Manly and Rose Bay and have recently been recorded on Goat Island, Clarke Island and Sisters Bay. Having a relatively little known species of native mammal in the middle of Sydney has allowed researchers from the University of Western Sydney to embark on studies of their distribution, abundance and genetics.
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